2 December

'Six o'clock swill' begins

1917 'Six o'clock swill' begins

Six p.m. closing of pubs was introduced as a temporary wartime measure. It ushered in what became known as the 'six o'clock swill', in which patrons drank their fill before closing time. The practice was to last for 50 years. Read more...
First Bishop of Aotearoa consecrated

1928 First Bishop of Aotearoa consecrated

Frederick Bennett, who had a Ngāti Whakaue mother and an Irish father, was ordained as an Anglican priest in 1897. He spent 13 years as superintendent of the Māori mission in Rotorua before moving to Hastings for mission work in Hawke’s Bay. Read more...